


Back On The Block (Hiatus)

by OblivionsGarden



Category: Attack the Block (2011)
Genre: F/M
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2016-08-14
Updated: 2016-08-14
Packaged: 2018-08-08 17:06:05
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 4
Words: 5,152
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/7766134
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/OblivionsGarden/pseuds/OblivionsGarden
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Post film. The boys think it's just another normal day when they head to Ron's for the evening. That is until they find the corpse on his living room floor. The aliens are back and with the help of Pest's long time crush, it's time to save the block again. (Pest/OC)</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. It's Happening Again

**Title -** _Back On The Block_  
 **Chapter title -** _It's Happening Again  
_ **Author -** _OblivionsGarden  
_ **Genre -** _Romance/Sci-Fi  
_ **Disclaimer -** _I do not own Attack The Block in anyway shape or form. I only own my original characters. For this chapter,_ Ruby and Jasper.

 

* * *

"Come, fam. We'll chill at Ron's then head off."  
"And go home stinkin' of weed. Mum will love that."  
"Calm down Biggz, we'll spray you with fabreeze first."

Pest laughed along with Moses and the others as they walked into the building. They stood before the lifts, Jerome pressing the button,and waiting for it to land. As the thick silver doors opened, Dennis smirked elbowing Moses and nodding to Pest, who was leant against the wall and facing the opposite direction. He had not yet seen who was on the other side of the doors.  
"Alright guys." The young girl stepped out of the lift, moving her battered skateboard to rest in her left hand. At the sound of her voice, Pest turned. a small smirk on his face.  
"Alright Ruby." It was no secret that Pest fancied Ruby. Ever since he went to Ron's place and found her laughing about something on the television with Brewis.  
"Pest." She nodded and brushed past the group of lads.  
"When are we goin' on that date then?" Pest called as she moved towards the front door.  
"Not any time soon." She sent the comment over her shoulder, not daring to let the cocky boy see her pink cheeks.  
"Cold!" Pest chuckled. "I'll wear you down eventually!"  
"See you later." Ruby ignored his last comment and left the building, mounting her skateboard as soon as the door swung shut behind her.

"You are never gonna get that." Dennis laughed at his friend.  
"You watch, bruv. She is gonna cave one day. Trust." Pest shook his head, hitting the familiar ' _19_ ' button on the lift wall.

They made their way to Ron's in their usual loud manner. When Ron answered he seemed reluctant to let the boys in.  
"What's goin' on?" Moses frowned. He knew it was nothing to do with Hi-Hatz. Hi-Hatz was dead and Ron ran the business now. Admittedly business was smaller but it suited Ron better.  
With a sigh, Ron stepped back and opened the door. Now filled with curiosity the boys bustled through the door to see what was wrong with their friend. Jerome saw it first.

"Jesus Christ!" He took a quick step back, bumping into Moses. The boys stepped around him, to stare at what had shocked him so much.  
"Fam, what the fuck is that?" Dennis turned to Ron.  
Ron shrugged. "His girlfriend brought it up." He nodded in Pest's direction.  
"Who?"  
"Ruby." Ron dropped into his armchair, pulling out a cigarette. "Dragged it from her mate Jasper's house in a black bag."  
" _That_ fit in a black bag?" Biggz shook his head in disbelief.  
"Well...The bottom was hanging out. Police stopped her once but she told 'em it was a college project."  
"Dead?" Moses moved forward, closer to the... _Thing_.  
"Deader than dead. There's a knife in it's head."  
Moses knelt beside it, memories flooding back into his mind and he was sure the same was happening to everyone else in the room. "Where was Ruby going?"  
"Back to Jasper's. He called her ranting about something eating Rocky."  
"Rocky?"  
"His dog."  
Dennis clenched his fists. "Them things ate Pogo." He thought of his dog, innocently running across the park to find the source of noise and winding up being the alien's dinner.  
"Yeah. But Rocky's a Doberman." Ron said. "They'd have to be bigger than those black things to eat a Doberman." He gestured now to the corpse lying on the floor between his sofas.

Bigger than the aliens they'd seen before. Twice the size and a dirty off white colour. Pieces of hair hung off in random patches. It's arms and legs were long and gangly, the bones pushing against the thin sheet of skin. It's head was long and rougher than sandpaper, again without eyes but with a huge set of alarmingly sharp teeth. This time, it's teeth were pitch black, a stark contrast to it's pale body.

"Fam...It looks like the first one. That we killed on the park...Just bigger." Pest commented. "If Ruby's gone to Jasper's and there's another one there..."  
"No, no, no. Don't worry about that. This is the one she killed at Jasper's. I think he just found Rocky's body is all. She said she was going to calm him down. He loved the dog apparently." Ron explained, reclining in his chair now. "Don't you worry. Get yourselves a joint, and relax. She's coming back here after she's seen to Jasper."

The boys did as Ron said but unlike most of the time, the weed did nothing to stop them thinking the worst. They were all thinking it, even Ron. It was happening again. Aliens were back on the block.


	2. Back In The Weed Room

**Title -** _Back On The Block_  
 **Chapter title -** _Back In The Weed Room_  
 **Author -** _OblivionsGarden_  
 **Genre -** _Romance/Sci-Fi_  
 **Disclaimer -** _I do not own Attack The Block in anyway shape or form. I only own my original characters. For this chapter, Ruby and Jasper._

 **A/n -** _Please read and review, I'd greatly appreciate it. Hope you enjoy, xx (:_

* * *

Ruby Wilson pressed her cold finger to the doorbell of her long time friend Jasper's house. She stood, faintly amused at the white steam her breath against the air made, thinking of the beast she'd just delivered to Ron's flat. Stuck in her daydream, she was alarmed by the trembling hand that shot out of the doorway, grabbed a fistful of her blue hoodie and dragged her inside.

"Mate, what the fuck?" Ruby pushed Jasper away, shutting the front door behind her.  
"There's another one. One of those fucking things in the garden and Rocky's dead, I just found his head by the patio doors and I can hear the thing fucking growling in the bushes. I don't know what to do, I can't call the police they'll find my stash upstairs and-"  
Ruby ignored Jasper's ramblings and pushed her jaw length, ebony hair away from her face. She moved past the panicking man and headed into the darkened kitchen. She lifted a hand to turn the light on but Jasper slapped it away.  
"Do you want it to fucking see us?"  
Shaking her head Ruby continued on, leaning against the kitchen counter and peering out through the silver blinds in the window.  
"There's nothing there man." She said, still peering through.

The garden was empty save for random patches of crimson blood. Some she knew was from where she's managed to plunge the kitchen knife into the beasts head. The other blood, she presumed was from Rocky. The only movement in the garden was the leaves being jostled by the heavy wind. Jasper joined Ruby at her side, taking one look through the blinds and stepping back.  
"In the bushes. Why can't you see it."  
Squinting now,as though it'd better her eyesight, Ruby looked into the bushes. Then she saw it. The glinting silver threads of light hitting the black of the teeth. She gulped, as the thing moved forward but found herself unable to move away from the blinds. Then it ran. Straight at her faster than she could comprehend. It smashed through the window, sending her toppling backward into the kitchen island. She jumped back up, took a millisecond to gather her bearings and grabbed Jasper.

"Run!" She shouted.

They both ran for the front door, pulling pieces of furniture out behind them to delay the creature. Ruby _just_ remembered to grab her skateboard as they pelted out of the driveway. They ran flat out down the backstreets where Jasper had resided for the past year. Their feet hurt from pounding against the pavements but with the snarling from behind them they didn't slow. Ruby grimaced as the freezing winter air whipped around her face.  
"Ruby!" Jasper's scream was anguished and she stopped, turning and spotting him on the floor. He was trying to climb to his feet but had seemingly twisted his ankle, leaving him unable to stand. Ruby ran forward but the creature got to him first. As she came within two steps of Jasper, his blood was sprayed across her face and chest. A soft gurgle remained in his throat as the life drained out of him. Knowing it was too later for him, Ruby once again mounted her skateboard and sped off down the street.

The creature was literally inches away as she approached the main road. She rode along side cars until a pick-up made it way past. She clutched tightly onto the bed of the truck, speeding up with it. The creature stayed at the backstreet for a second before dissapearing into the night. Ruby didn't dare slow down. A horn honked behind her and she heard someone call her name. Turning she found Brewis leaning out the window of his dad's car.  
"Open the door!" She shouted. Brewis slowed his car, opening the passenger side door. Ruby let go of the truck, dodged out of the way and grabbed Brewis' door. She climbed inside, leaving her skateboard behind in the road. She slammed the door shut and stared ahead.  
"I was going to Ron's...I-" Brewis noticed the blood covering the girl now.  
"Yeah. Ron's."

She squoze her eyes shut trying to ignore the metallic smell of blood under her nose. Flashes of Jasper's anguished face flashed into her mind, torturing her. She darted her tongue out along her lips that had been dried by the wind only to taste the copper blood. Jasper's blood. Her best friends blood.  
"I'm gonna be sick." She murmured.  
"Uh...Oh shit. Hold on." Brewis made a speedy stop at the side of the road and Ruby ran out into an alleyway. She doubled over, emptying the contents of her stomach over the floor. When she felt safe enough to get back in the car without vomiting again she returned to Brewis.

Within ten minutes they were outside the block of flats. Brewis turned to Ruby unsure of what to say. He still didn't know what had happened unable to get the girl to talk to him.  
"Do you want me to-"  
"No." Ruby unbuckled her seat belt and climbed out of the car leaving Brewis to scramble around to follow her.

Ruby walked thoughtlessly into the building, climbing into the lift allowing just enough time for Brewis to slip in before she pushed the 19 button. When the lift landed she continued on to Ron's door and knocked.  
"Alri-" Ron stopped mid word as he saw the blood. "What happened?" He asked opening the door. Ruby and Brewis went inside, Brewis still confused.  
"Shit! Rubes, what's going on?" Pest jumped up from his place on the sofa moving forward.  
Ruby stepped back. "Jasper's dead." She felt the bile rising in her throat again and sped into the bathroom, locking the door behind her.

She could hear them talking between them in hushed panic voices. She turned the taps on full to block out the noise. Looking up she saw herself, the bright blood in stark contrast to her pale skin. Bits of her hair were stuck to her face from sweat. Her hoodie and tee shirt were soaked.  
"Ruby?" Pest's voice drifted beneath the door, louder than the running water. "Do you need anything?"  
She coughed to clear her throat, finding it difficult to talk. "Clothes. I need clean clothes."  
"Right, Gimme a sec." She heard his footsteps fade.

She stripped off her hoodie and tee shirt and then her jeans when she found small red spots of blood on her thighs. Five minutes later there was a knock at the door.  
"Ruby?" She grabbed a towel to cover herself and opened the door a crack. "I got some of my old stuff that doesn't fit anymore. It should fit you I think." Pest held up a bundle of clothes.  
"Thanks." Ruby took the clothes and shut the door.

She found a flannel under the sink and covered it in warm water. She cleaned off the blood, sweat and dirt before turning to the clothes. A pair of dark grey jeans with a rip in the knee, they were baggy on her small frame but not so much to fall down. The tee shirt was blue and loose and the hoodie, black and large. She slipped her trainers back on, brushed her hair away from her face and left the bathroom, leaving her bloody clothes in the bathtub.

"Ruby...What happened?" Moses shifted on the sofa so she could sit between him and Pest.  
"One of those things was in his garden." She nodded to the corpse that was still lay in the middle of the room. "It came through the window so we ran but Jasper twisted his ankle when he fell and I didn't get back to him in time." She stopped short, ignoring Jasper's face when it flashed in front of her eyes.  
"Why are they back though, Fam?" Biggz asked.  
"Back? What do you mean back?"Ruby frowned.  
"You never told her?" Brewis looked between the boys.  
"Told me what?"  
"About two months ago, they block was attacked by aliens." Brewis answered for them. "Big fucking, hairy black aliens with glowing blue teeth and no eyes."  
"Aliens?"  
"They fell from the sky. On bonfire night." Jerome added.  
"You've got to be kidding me."  
"Where do you think Moses got those scars, fam. And Jerome's on his neck. Alien scratches, alien bites." Dennis clenched and unclenched his jaw. "The feds made us cover it up. Didn't want to cause no panic. It was either that or go to prison for everything that happened in the ends that night. Shit, one of 'em nearly killed me!"  
Ruby stood from her seat of the sofa. "Your limp that just suddenly appeared?" She looked at Pest and he nodded. He pulled up the leg of his jeans, showing the still red scars of the bite. "But...You said they're big and black. This is huge and white." She tapped the corpse with the toe of her trainers.  
"We've been talking." Said Jerome. "They look similar to the others, maybe the same species or somethin'. We think they're here cause we killed the others."  
"Killed them? How?"

The boys went into telling the whole story of bonfire night including all the gritty details. Pest felt a pang of shame as he retold the mugging of Sam. Ruby didn't bat an eyelid.  
"So now they're back...We can't just blow up a fucking flat again." Ruby dropped back onto the sofa beside Pest. "What do we do?"  
"Well, they can't be that hard to kill. You killed this one, right." Biggz asked.  
"By sheer luck. It was going for Jasper whilst he let Rocky out for a shit. It didn't see me coming. The one that killed Jasper was too fast. I had to hold onto a truck whilst on my skateboard to get away from it."  
"We get tooled up and-"  
"And what? Fight them? We don't even know how many there are Dennis."

The whole group jumped as a load thud sounded at the door.  
"The fuck was that?" Ron moved to the door, looking through the spy hole in top. He gulped and stepped backwards. "Four of 'em."  
"Weed room. Now!" Moses ushered everyone into the weed room and barricaded the door.

Once again the block was being attacked by aliens and once again the gang were locked in Ron's weed room without a plan.


	3. The Plan

**Title -** _Back On The Block_  
 **Chapter title -** _The Plan_  
 **Author -** _OblivionsGarden_  
 **Genre -** _Romance/Sci-Fi_  
 **Disclaimer -** _I do not own Attack The Block in anyway shape or form. I only own my original characters. For this chapter, Ruby._

 **A/n -** _Please read and review, I'd greatly appreciate it. Hope you enjoy, xx (:_

* * *

The growling of the creatures was the only thing piercing the thick silence that had engulfed the gang. Ron was sat silently in the far corner, Brewis sat on top of one of the many tables, Biggz and Dennis sat together, leant against the wall, Moses and Jerome sat opposite them, Pest was listening at the door to alarm them if any aliens came too close to the door and Ruby was sat cross legged in the middle of the room.

"What do we do now?" Biggz asked.  
"We sit in here, safe, until we think of a plan." Moses answered. "Pest come away from the door, fam. You're making me edgy,"

Pest did as Moses said, moving instead to sit beside Ruby. He contemplated putting his arm around her shoulder but after remembering the elbow in the ribs he received last time he thought better of it.  
"Are you alright?" He asked instead.  
"I just watched my best friend die. I'm peachy."  
"Sorry."  
Ruby sighed. "No. I am. I shouldn't snap. Sorry."  
"Ruby Wilson apologizing to me? Never thought I'd see the day."  
"Shut up." She smiled and playfully slapped his leg. "Here." She pulled out a packet of skins from her pocket. "You roll better than I do."  
"That's more like the Ruby I know." Pest shuffled over to pluck some buds to make themselves a joint.

Half an hour later and Ruby was lay on her back with her head resting in Pest's lap. Pest himself was looking smugly at his friends.  
"So, while we're here up shit creek without a paddle...Why won't you go on a date with me?"  
Ruby groaned, pulling the roll up from Pest's lips. "Awkward."  
"Why?"  
"Well it's alright hanging out and whatever but as soon as you get on a date it's like, now you have to impress each other and you're in full awareness of the attraction. It makes me feel awkward." Rub sighed blowing smoke up into the air. "Were you scared? You know, last time they came?"  
"I was shittin' myself." Pest took the roll up back. "Especially at Tia's when they got hold of Den...I thought they were gonna crack his neck. And when we were in the hall and they grabbed Jerome."  
"Lucky they had you and Moses to help 'em out, eh?"  
"It's not your fault. The things we dealt with were fast and if these are faster there's no way you could've saved Jasper."  
"Yeah..." Ruby sat up, rubbing her eyes with the heels of her hands. "Anyone got any plans yet?" She asked. No one answered. "Do you really think they're back just cause you killed those others?"  
"It's the only thing we could think of." Dennis said.

Ruby stood and started pacing, trying to think of someway to get out of this huge mess. Preferably without anyone else dying. As she went further toward the back of the room her foot hit something hard and sent it rolling beneath the desk. She just caught a brief glimpse of a blue spherical object. Frowning, she knelt down, tilting her head to see what it was. She spotted it near the back leg of the table and leant forward to retrieve it.  
"Holy shit." She breathed.  
"What?"  
"They aren't here for you." She twisted the ball in hand.

It was covered in a gooey substance all over and through the thick casing she could just make out something small and white with tiny pitch black teeth. It was curled up inside, no bigger than a golf ball.  
"What is that, fam?" Biggz asked, straining his neck to see.  
"I think it's an egg."  
"An egg?"  
"The female you killed. Where abouts was it in here?"  
"Uhhh..." Moses frowned, trying to remember. "About there, where you are now on the table."

Ruby tilted her head again, looking now at the underside of the table. She found a nest of eggs, all stuck to the underside with the gooey liquid. "Here..." She handed the egg to Moses before turning and pulling Pest's trademark hat from his head. Returning to the table she started gently pulling the eggs from each other and dropping them into the hat. "I bet you anything that they're after these eggs. How else would they know to come here? Why would you still have the scent on you after so long?"  
"It was already pregnant when we killed it?" Jerome found himself wanting to vomit.  
"Well now what?" Brewis asked coming closer to look at the eggs.  
"We give them what they want."  
"What? Like...Go out there and just give them the eggs? You'll get savaged."  
"Not if you're calm about it, Brewis." Ruby took the other egg from Moses and placed it in the hat. "Haven't you ever seen Jurassic Park three? One dude steals an egg but they the chick gives it back. Nice and calm on the floor."  
"The only reason they didn't kill her is because another Dino called 'em!" Jerome took the hat from her grasp and handed it Pest. "You ain't goin' out there, you'll die."  
"Pest, give them to me." She held out her hand expectantly.  
"No." Pest moved the hat behind his back.  
"Pest don't be a dick."  
"No, Ruby I'm not gonna let you go out there and get eaten!"  
"If you don't then we all get eaten! We don't have another plan, Pest! Give me the fucking eggs!"

Ron, now pleased at the thought of possibly getting out of here, moved silently from his corner and over to Pest. Whilst the pair were arguing he snatched the hat from Pest's grasp and handed them to Ruby.  
"What the fuck?" Pest was livid. "Do you want her to die?"  
"No, but she's right. We don't have another plan."  
"But-"  
"Pest...Let her go." Moses moved forward now. "Ruby's smart. She'll be fine."  
"Thank you, Moses."

With shaking hands Ruby moved over to the door, clutching the handle nervously. Just as she was about to pull the door open, Pest stopped her.  
"Please, Rubes...You don't have to do this we can think of something else."  
"Pest-"  
"What if you don't come back?"  
"I have to come back." Pest frowned as Ruby smiled a little. "We have that date, remember?" And with that simple promise left hanging in the air, Ruby opened the door, slipped out of the small gap and pulled it shut behind her. Now, she was face to face with alot of very big, very angry looking aliens.


	4. Letting Go

**Title -** _Back On The Block_  
 **Chapter title -** _Letting Go_  
 **Author -** _OblivionsGarden_  
 **Genre -** _Romance/Sci-Fi_  
 **Disclaimer -** _I do not own Attack The Block in anyway shape or form. I only own my original characters. For this chapter, Ruby._

 **A/n -** _Please read and review, I'd greatly appreciate it. Hope you enjoy, xx (:_

* * *

"I don't like this." Pest grumbled. He continued to press his ear against the inside of the door, listening for any noise to give him an excuse to go after Ruby.  
"No one does, Pest." Biggz moved to stand beside him, becoming to agitated to sit in one place.  
"No one except Jerome tried to stop her." Pest ground his teeth together.  
"Come on, you know what Ruby's like." Brewis spoke up. "She's more stubborn than all of us put together. If she says she's going out there, she's going out there."  
Pest smiled a little. "That's true. There never has been much to stop her doing what she wants."  
"Exactly. So just listen out in-case she needs us."  
"You got your date, anyway." Moses smirked.  
"Shut up, man." Pest turned back to the door.  
"Ah look, he's gone all red." Dennis laughed.  
"Don't know why. After so long of tryin' to get her to go out with you." Jerome shook his head.  
"And all it took was a bunch of aliens." Ron commented. "Funny that."

* * *

Meanwhile, in Ron's living room, Ruby was struggling to control her rapid breathing. Her heart was pounding in her ears as she inched her way along, back pressed to the wall. So far nothing bad had happened. The aliens were facing her, she imagined if they had eyes, they'd be glaring. She knew they could obviously smell the eggs, still contained inside Pest's hat.  
"Come on, Ruby." She whispered to herself. "You're fine."

When she reached the center of the room, she slid down the wall until she was knelt before the creatures. She moved the hat in front of her, causing one of the aliens to move forward with a growl. Ruby let out a gasp, shuffling backwards on her knees. Slowly this time, she moved the hat forward, gently pouring out the eggs onto the floor. Shakily she pushed them forward and then sat back on her knees.  
One of the creatures moved forward, sniffing at the eggs, then closer to Ruby, sniffing the air around her. Bending it's head low, it opened it's jaw and lifted a few of the eggs into it's mouth. Three other creatures did like wise before they pounced through the window, smashing it and dissapearing off, down the side of the building. Only one creature remained now, circling Ruby as though she were it's prey.  
As the inside of her cheeks began to water as though she were about to throw up, she darted a hand forward, scooping up Pest's hat and clutching it tightly in her fist. Unfortunately the fast movement of her arm angered the creature and it swiped one of it's large claws forward.

Ruby felt the sharp claws slash the skin on one side of her face and one claw tear the flesh on her neck. She felt the blood spurt out and lifted the hat in her hands to stop the flow. She watched the creature disappear through the window and glanced quickly around to make sure there were no more. With one last breath before she collapsed into the blackness swimming into her vision she screamed a name.  
"PEST!"

* * *

"PEST!"  
Her scream was muffled by the door but it was heard and Pest was running through the flat within a second. He collapsed to his knees, finding the hat that was now discarded on the floor and pressing it against her neck wound.  
"Call an ambulance!" He shouted over his shoulder. The blood from her neck had soaked his hat and was now on his trembling hand. "NOW!"  
Moses jumped into action, immediately pulling out his mobile and dialing 999.  
"I need an ambulance my friends bleeding from her face and her neck...Wyndham Tower Block, floor 19...I'll send someone down to wait at the door. She was..." Moses faltered. If he said aliens they'd think it was some kind of prank call. "Attacked. I don't know what it was." He lied. He knelt beside Pest now, listening to the woman on the line. "Keep pressure on the wound."  
"I am, she won't stop bleeding." Pest was frantic, not knowing what to do.  
"Jerome go down and wait at the door for the ambulance. Biggz go to the first floor and see if Sam's home. She can help until they get here."

A few minutes later and Biggz returned with Sam who was carrying a first aid kit. Pest sunk to the floor feeling useless as Sam used wads of cotton wool and bandages to cover the wound. There were five long scratches across Ruby's face. One above her eyebrow, one across her eye that had cut the eye lid, one from the side of the nose and across the cheek, one across the bottom lip and chin and the worst one, was the deep one across the bottom of her jaw and neck.  
"Is she gonna die?" Pest's voice cracked when he spoke and it was only now that Moses noticed the streaks of tears down his friends cheeks.  
Sam looked up, her eyes saying everything. "I don't know."  
"I've said it before man, Ruby's smart and stubborn. She promised she'd be back and she will." Moses hooked his arm beneath Pest's and pulled him to his feet. "Give her a reason to come back."  
Pest swiped the sleeve of his jacket across his face. "You're such a pussy." He forced a smile as Jerome came running into the flat, three paramedics behind him.

* * *

"Is there anyone who should be called?" The nurse asked, clutching to her clipboard.  
"No. Ruby doesn't really talk to her family anymore." Pest answered whilst trying to stay still in his seat.

Ruby had been taken straight into the emergency room so they could try to stop the bleeding, stitch her up and restore all the blood she's lost. Sam had gone with the doctors so she could tell the boys of her condition. She figured they'd rather hear it from a friend than a random doctor. When she finally came out, Pest was straight on his feet and marching over to her.  
"She's stable but unconscious."  
"Well when will she be conscious?"  
"We don't know. All we can do is wait for her to wake up." Sam sighed. "She's going to have scarring on her face."  
"I don't care."  
"She might, so be considerate." Sam pulled something out of a small plastic bag. "Here, I had this washed for you." Pest's hat was cleaner than he had ever remembered it being.  
"Can we see her?" He asked taking the hat from her.  
"Sure. Follow me."

Ruby looked small against the stark white sheets of the bed. One side of her face was covered in dressing, along with her neck.  
"One of the cuts hit her eye so her vision may suffer. But we won't know for sure until she wakes up." Sam gave a sympathetic smile and left the boys alone.  
Pest dragged a large armchair from the corner of the room to the side of Ruby's bed. He forgot now, of his usual masculine pretenses around his friend and reached forward to take Ruby's hand.  
"She'll be alright you know." Jerome broke the silence. "She always is."  
"I know." Pest answered.

That was all that was said for the rest of the day. When it came the time for the boys to leave, Pest hid in the bathroom. He sent a text to Dennis informing him he was staying with Ruby for the night. He caught Sam in the hall and asked her to make sure no one kicked him out. She promised to do what she could. Again, Pest sat beside Ruby, her cold hand in his warm.  
"C'mon Rubes, wake up." Pest pulled his hat from his pocket and placed it inside her right hand. "Can't make that date if you don't." With a small smile Pest slumped down in his seat, ready to wait for her to open her eyes. Soon the lack of sleep overwhelmed him and he succumbed to unconsciousness.


End file.
